RNSTITUTE OF FOOD ANO AGRICUL TUR.AL SCIENCES

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

FLORIOA COOPERATIVE

EXTENSION SERVICE

VEGETARIAN A Ve0etable Crops Extension Publication \e_sdoblc Cr~,r" Department • 1'255 Ii6PP • Cainc .. \ill c. fl 32611 • Tdcplk,nc 3g·2-2n4 • \dii?ii WWif ±±f

Vegetarian 86-03 March 24, 1986

Contents

NOTES OF INTEREST

A. New Publications

B. Vegetable Crops Calendar

II. COMMERCIAL VEGETABLES

A. Pumpkin Varieties for Florida

B. 1986 Commercial Vegetable In-Service Training Program

C. Summary of Result/Demonstration Project Examining the Use of Row Covers for Frost Protection In Strawberries

III. VEGETABLE GARDENING

A. Florida State Fair Horticulture Contest

B. 1986 Nat iona l Community Gardening Contest

Note: Anyone is free to use the information in this newslettere Whenever possible 7 please give credit to the authors.

The use of trade names in this publication is solely for the purpose of providing information and does not necessarily constitute a recommendation of the product.

Thr. Inst : tu'~ of Food and Agn~ultu ra l Sc,e rices ,s an Equal Employment Opportunlly. Afformat,v e Action Em p'oyer autnon zed to provide research , f:ducat,onal ,nform;.ita)n and other servi ces oniy to ,ndiv1duals and insti tut ions that f unct ion w!thoui regard to race, color. sex, or nation<}! ongin.

COOPERATIVE tXTSNSlON WORK IN AGRl::::UL TURE />.ND HOM!'.: ECOl\!OMICS, STATE OF FLOAmA, IFAS. UN!VEF!Sff Y OF FLOR!DP. U . S DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE , AND BOARDS O F COUNTY COIVIMtSS!ONERS COOPERATI NG

NEW LOOK FOR THE VEGETARIAN - With this issue, we are crying out a ne~ format for the Vegetarian. Hope­fully as the new format develops, we can add the use of art work and col­ored paper. If you have any sugges­tions, please pass them along.

1. NOTES OF INTEREST

A. New Publications

Agricu l tural Experiment Station, Circular S-323, June 1985. HORIZON A Fresh Market Tomato with Concen­trated Fruit Set by J.W. Scott, J.A. Bartz, H.H. Bryan, P.H . Everett, D.D. Gull, T.K. Howe, P.J. Stoffella, and R.B. Volin

B. Vegetab l e Crops Calendar

April 28-30, 1986. Commercial Veg­etable Crops In-Service Training, Sanford, Seminole County Agr. Cen­ter. Contact George Hochmuth, Veg­etable Crops, Gainesville.

May 8, 1986. Cucumber/Squash Vari­ety Demonstration 4:00pm - 8:0-0pm, AREC Leesburg, G.W. Elmstrom

May 29-30, 1986. Home horticulture agents In-Service Training. Camp Ocala. Contact Jim Stephens.

June 4, 1986. Watermelon Field Day 1:3 0pm - 5:00pm, AREC Leesburg, G.w. Elmstrom

II. COMMERCIAL VEGETABLES

A. Pumpkin Varieties for Florida.

Pumpkins have not been grown commonly as a commercial crop in Florida. The demand for pumpkins during the fall holiday - Halloween and Thanksgiving-season, however, suggests chat cons i derably more pumpk ins coul d be grown and pro fit ­ably sold within the s t Rte. Pump­kjns, like other cucurb i ts, can be

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successfully double cropped on full -bed plastic mulch in the summer and fall following a spring tomato crop, for example.

As with other vegetables, it is essential to have a marketing plan before one can decide which varie ­ties are appropriate to consider for production. For local market-road­side stand or PYO - all sizes of pumpkins are in demand, hence grow­ers would want to select an array of varieties bearing quite large to miniature fruit. On the ocher hand, for wholesale the focus probably should be on varieties producing medium to large fruit.

To identify pumpkin varieties for West Central Florida, a variety demonstration was conducted as a second-crop following spring toma­toes on a commercial farm in Manatee County in the summer-fall of 1985. In the absence of more specific information, these results may be used as a guide for variety selec­tion for other parts of the state.

Seed of 18 varieties or ad­vanced breeding lines were direct seeded on July 22. Spacing was 4 ft. between plants on raised beds covered with black plastic on 13 ft. centers with irrigation ditches between each row. The pumpkin crop was grown on residual fertilizer remaining from the spring tomato crop. Standard pesticides were ap­plied approximately weekly for dis­ease management and as needed for insect management. Fruit were har­vested on October 3 and October 15.

Average fruit weight ranged from 1.9 lb for 'Little Lantern' and 'Small Sugar' to 11.1 lb for 'Con­

necticut Field', and average fruit size (H x D) ranged from 4.0 x 5.3 inches for 'Little Lantern' to 9.6 x 10.2 inches for 'Connecticut Field'.

Highest marketable yield based on fruit weight was produced by 'Jack O'Lantern' (4,852 lbs/1000 linear bed ft . ), an open-pollinated vining type pumpkin. 'HMX4679', a semi-bush hybrid from Harris-Moran,

yielded the serond highest market­able yield at 45tn lbs/1000 :inear bed ft. 'Pankow s Field 1

, a vining , open-pollinated variety ranked third at 4456 lbs/1000 linear bed ft.

Marketable \ield based on fruit number was highest for 'Little Lan­tern' with a yield of 1060 fruit/ 1000 linear bed ft. 1 Little Lan­tern' and 'Small Sugar' were the smallest varieties in the trial, 'Triple ~-reat', a small pumpkin fo­pies and jack-o-lanterns, ranked second in number produced, with 900 fruit/1000 linear bea ft. The next highest yield was 1 Spookie' at 780 fruit/JOOO linear bed ft. Yield (fruit number) was low for 'Trick or Treat' due to poor germination and plant stand.

'Little Lantern' produced an earlier yield than most, with 74% harvested at the first picking. rJack O'Lantern' also had a high early yield with 71% harvested at the first picking. The majority of the entries had a more even distri­bution between harvests. Two excep­tions were rTriple Treat' and 'How­den' which produced 77% and 73%, respectively, at second harvest.

Based on the results of this trial and a 1982 trial conducted by T. K. Howe and w. E. Waters at the Gulf Coast Research & Education Center, growers may wish to consider the following pumpkin varieties:

Big Max. A nearly round, deep­orange colored, faintly-sutured, very large - fruited, late maturing, open-pollinated variety. Although Bix Max is a true squash (Cucu rbita maxima), it can be marketed as a pumpkin (Cucurbita ~).

Pankow's Field (Harris Moran). A late, large-fruited, orange­skinned, open-pollinated variety.

Jackpot (Harris Moran). A com­pact-vine, hybrid, bearing medium to large, orange - yellow fruit.

Connecticut Field. The stan­dard, medium to large fruited, orange - skinned, open-pollinated variety ,

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Spirit (Petoseed). An e;irly <:em~·-bush, hybrid bearing me<lium­s i zeri, smooth, dark-or.mge fruit.

.iack O'Lantern (Northup King). An open-pollinated variety produci.ng smooth , medium-orange, medium-sized t::-uit.

You~g's Beauty (Harris-Moran), An open-polli.nated, vinir,g variety producing medium-sized, dark-orange fruit.

Little Lantern (Stokes). A prolific, open-pollinated, variety bearing miniature to small, orange f,..uit.

Growers should take into consideration yield, market poten-1·ial and past experience, if avaJ.1-able, when choosing varieties. Early yield may also be a factor in some situations. It may be helpful to plant a number of varieties of different sizes to determine what best fits a particular market situ­ation. The very small varieties seem to be popular for use in crafts, seasonal decorations and as childrenrs gifts.

For more details, request Brad­enton GCREC Research Report BRA1986-l from the authors.

(Maynard & Gilreath Veg. 86-03)

B. 1986 Commercial Vegetable In -Service Training Program

On the following page is the program for the upcoming commercial vegetable inservice training pro­gram. This year's program will be held in Sanford, FL and will focus on vegetable f ertilizer management,

(Hochmuth Veg. 86-03)

Date: Place: Topic:

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COM.HERC L4.L VgGET!>J3 LE Hl- ·SERVICE TRA.INING

April 28-30~ 1986 Seminole County Agricultural Center Commercial Vegetable Fertilization

PROGRAM

Aoril 28

Vegetable Soils, Plant Nutrition, and Soil Testing

8:00 A.M. Assemble

8:15

9:00

10:00

10: 15

12:00 PM

1:30-5:00

Evening

Jerry Kidder - The Vegetable Soils of F.toridcl

Don Maynard - Principles of Plant Nutriti.on - Required nutrients and roles in plant physiology

Lime and relation to plant nutrition Mobility of plant nutrients in soil and plant Crop demand curves Deficiency diagnosis Cultivar differences in plant nutrition

- Environmental effects on plant nutrition

Break

Ed Hanlon - So:i.l and Tissue Testing - Why we soil test - Soil sample collection for fertilizer recommendations - Soil sample collection for deficiency diagnosis - Tissue sampling and test interpretations - Sampling soils for soluble salts - Sampling soils for double-crop scnemes - Test interpretations - "'Pounds per acre" or "linear hed feet' - The University of Florida soil test report format - Using commercial labs - Looking at some test results froo various labs

Effect of soil type on the lime requirement

Lunch - Quincy's Restaurant

Tour - Zellwin Farms 5 Zellwood - Transplant production - Fi eld production - Pack in g houses

- On your own - Entertainment possibilities will be provided

8:00 AM

8:15

9:00

9:40

10:00

10:15

10:45

12:00 PM

1:00-5 :00

Eve n in g

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April 29

Fertilizers and Fertilizer Management

Assemble

He vie: Fertilizer Mining and :Manufacture presented by International Minerals and Chemicals Corporation

George Hochmuth - Fertilizers and Fertilization - Sources, placement, timing - Slow release fertilizers - Foliar fertilization - Costs of fertilizer misuse

Dorota Hamon - Fertigation - Drip irrigation - Overhead irrigation

Break

Jer ry Kidder - Fertilizer practices a nd groundwater issues

Ed Hanlon - Laboratory and Field Quick Tests (Bri ng your pH and soluble salts meter).

Lunch - Catered lunch at Agric. Center

Demonstration Tour - Sanford AREC - Fertilizer reco mmendation formulation - Executing a fertilizer demonstration trial - Deficiency symptoms and soluble salt demonstra ti ons - Liquid fertilizer injection wheel demonstration

Barbe cue

April 30_

Planning Sess ion

8:00 AM Assemble

8:15 - 12 Noon Planning Session - The topic of the next Commercia l Vegetable In- Service Training program will be "Vegetable Cultivars, Seed Techno l ogy, and Stand Establishment." (An agend a for the plann i ng session will be provided; please sen d your ideas so that they can be placed on the pl anning session agenda) .

C. Summary Of R~sult/Demonstra­tion Proiect Examin~ Us~ Of Row Covers For Frost Protection In Strawberries

LOCATION: COOPERATOR:

Keene Road, Plant City Steve McDonald,

McDonald Farms

Three row cover materials (polypropyle ne 0.6 oz./yd. and 1.5 oz./yd. manufactured by Kimberly­Clark and a plastic foam material approximately 1/8 inches thick manu­factured by IPM, Inc.) were placed in a commercial strawberry field to examine their potential for pro ­tecting against frost/freeze damage. The covers were loosely placed over 26 ft. of individual beds at 2 p.m. on Ja nuary 27, 1986 and removed at 3 p.m. on January 29, 1986. One half of the plots received overhead irri­gation when the grower irrigated the remaining portion of his field for the purpose of frost protection. The remaining plots were kept dry through the placement of sprinkler shields at the necessary locations. Two unirrigated check plots were also included in this trial. Mini­mum air temperatures in the field reached 23 degrees F. on the morning of January 28, and 26 degrees F. on the morning of January 29. The dur­ation of temperatures below 28 de­grees f. was approximately six hours on both days. Winds were generally calm with speeds occasionally reach­ing 3 - 4 miles per hour. Air tem­peratures beneath the row covers measured before sunrise (at approxi­mately 6:30 a.m.) were running ap­proximately 7 degrees F. above air temperature for the plastic IPM material and 6 - 7 degrees F. and 5 ~ 6 degrees F. for the 1.5 oz./yd. and O. 6 oz. /yd. Kimberly -Cla rk materials respectively.

After removing the covers, the plots were inspected for any damage to blossoms, green fruit, ripe fruit and foliage. Plots receiving no

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irrigation and without cover had 100% damage to the blossoms and all fruit. All plots .lith row covers were essentially free of damage to blossoms as well as the green and ripe fruit. The plots where the grower carried out his normal irri­gation practices for frost protec­tion were also free of damage except in a few small areas where th er e was an inadequate overlap of his sprin­kler pattern perhaps due in part to the light winds. Some foliar damage was noticed on plants covered with the IPM material. It is believed that this .. foliar burn" was caused by high temperatures underneath this cover that were reached prior to its removal on the afternoon of the 29th. It should also be noted that the covered plots that were to receive no irrigation likely received some minimal amount of water from drift and spray that could not be blocked. This primar­ily occurred on the first evening of freezing temperatures.

This demonstration showe d that if these or similar row cover mate­rials could be made cost effective) they should provide adequate pro­tection for strawberries from cold temperatures at l east down to 23 degrees F. The major obstacles to commercial adaptation of this prac­tice currently are the high cost of the materials and the absence of a suitable method for quick applica­~ion ano removal of the row covers.

(Mitchell> Hochmuth, Veg. 86-03)

III. VEGETABLE GARDENING

A. Florida State Fair Horticulture Contest

Over 150 students participated in the 4-H and FFA State Fair Horti­culture Contest on February 8 in Tampa. There were four sections in the contest: ide ntifica tion of Fruit Crops, Vegetable Crops and Ornamentals and the judging 0£ 3

classes of horticultural products. The winners and participants in the 4-H Section were the following:

Name Total Team Score Individual Score

Ann Eberly Elaine Davis

91 85

Anglea Heitmeyer 53 Joe Judge 96

County: Leon

Eric Hernandez Nick Hernandez Sean York Donna Lidel

County: Sarasota

92 87 93 80

Dana Robinson 97 J an Worthington 82 Jennifer 90

Dingfel der

County: St. Johns

Doris Carnes 80 Suzy Murphy 73 Laura Harrelson 88

County: Osceola

David Jimenez 65 Steve Hart 88 Sue Hart 84

County: Hil l sborough

Kathy Thorson Trina Medford

87 67

Christina Jensen 68 Tammy Brown 54

County: Clay

272

1st Place

272 +

2nd Place

269

3rd Place

241

4th Place

237

5th Place

222

6th Place (Tie)

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Ken Johnson Shannon Pepper Mark Fooshee

County: Duval

Natasha Green Alison

Wisenbaker Chris McLeod Gilda Ale xande r

County: Taylor

Ricky Blackman Angela Blackman Johnny Longhurst April Head

County: Leon

Janet Schock Joanne Whitfield Gavin Farrell

Countr: Sarasota

70 69 83

66 85

65 63

74 67 60 71

59 64 47

222

6t:h Place (Tie)

216

8th Place

212

9th Place

170

10th Place

Any 4- H or hort iculture agent, Vocational Agricultural teacher, or any 4-H/FFA member who is interested in participating in future contests (all events except the State Fair are separate for 4-H and FFA) may obtain more information from the following horticultural specialists at Gainesville:

Jim Stephens or Kathleen Delate­Vegetable Crops

Bob Black - Ornamental Horticulture Jim Ferguson - Fruit Crops

(Delate Veg. 86- 03)

B. 1986 National Community Gardening Contest

For the third consecutive year, a National Community Gardening Contest will be co- sponsored by the

American Community Gardening Asso­ciation (AGGA) and GLAD Wrap and Bags. The purpose of the contest is to focus public attention on the importance of community gardening, as well as to encourage and reward the efforts of the country's thou ­sands of community gardeners.

In a letter to Dean Woeste, Secretary of Agriculture John R. Block stresses the importance and need for the Extension Service to get involved in the promotion of community gardening. He and his wife have a plot in a Washington community garden. He points out that community gardening in America is "an important example of people helping themselves and others in the task of affordable home food produc­tion".

Most of the one-million-plus vegetable gardens in Florida are of the back yard or container grown variety. However, I know many of you agents are aware of community gardens in your county that could he enrolled in the national contest. In fact, some of you are responsible for helping estab li sh those gardens. And, most of you act as an educa­tional resource providing technical assistance.

Florida has had many entries in the national contest during its first two years. In 1985, there were 25 entries from this state. We have had award-winning gardens from at l east two counties - Duval and Osceola - and I may have overlooked one or two more.

At the national level in 1985, there were 620 entries and 118 win­ners. Once the fie ld was narrowed down to 200 semi-finalists, garden coordinators were interviewed by telephone. In July, site visits were made, which presented a problem for Florida gardeners since our sea­son was over by then,

The contest offers $26,000 in cash prizes divided into 5 cate­gories: large site ($1,000), small site ($1,000), new site ($1,000),

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special populations site ($1,000), and food for oth~rs ($1,000).

Entry information is provided in the form of a Contest Kit. These kits will be sent directly from contest headquarters this month (March) to all those who requested information last year. New groups interested in entering can obtain a Contest Kit by writing to: ACGA, P.O. Box 93147, Milwaukee, Wisco nsin 53202.

The Contest Kit contains: o• Contest rules and

regulations. b, Official entry and site

information form. c. Prize explanation sheet. d. Other information.

Contest rules and regulations Who is eligible: Any community gar­dening group with l.Q_ or more people who are engaged in the operation and maintenance of a community garden site. There must be at least one adult leader or advisor. Note: A gardener does not enter his indi ­vidual plot, but the group enters. Important dates: Florida entry forms must be postmarked on or before May 1, l986. Judging: Gardens are judged on one or more of the following:

a. Evaluation of official entry form,

b. Telephone interview with contact person to establish garde n 's history, organization, community involvement, and impact,

c. Site visit to semi-fi­nalists to evaluate practices and results. Entry requirements:

a. A co mmunity garden must be at l east 100 square feet in area, including a minimum of four vege­tables.

b. ~iajor focus on vegetable gardening.

c. Photographs may be neces ­sary.

d, Official entry signs must be posted at garden sites.

Extension Agents Please be looking for your

Contest Kits soon if you have requested them. Once more, the address to obtain kits and more information is: American Community Gardening Contest P.O. Box 93147 Milwaukee, WI 53202

If you need help on establish ­ing and conducting community gar­dens, feel free to get in touch with me.

(Stephens, Veg. 86-03)

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Prepared by Extension Vegetable Crops Specialists

Dr. D. J. Cant lif fe

Chairman fl ~i Dr. G. J. Hochmut~~J'~ Assistant Profes81_'t f-r¥.

Dr. M. Sherman

, I .

'·

Associate Professor

J.M. Stephens Associate Professor

Kathleen Delate Visiting Ext. Agent I

Dr. S. M. Olson Assistant Professor

Sr. W. M. Stall Professor

Dr. D. N. Maynard Professor